


Little Girl Lost

by ICanSpellConfusionWithAK



Category: The Maze Runner (Movies), The Maze Runner Series - All Media Types, The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-06
Updated: 2015-10-09
Packaged: 2018-04-25 05:09:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 9,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4947922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ICanSpellConfusionWithAK/pseuds/ICanSpellConfusionWithAK
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ada can't explain how she ended up in the Glade, let alone how her mind became connected with the boy known as Newt to the point that distance between them causes her physical pain. Newt isn't sure how to handle the appearance of a girl in the Glade or how close he can let himself get to her when neither of them know who they really are. Answers aren't the only things they've lost.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

_The little girl was crying._

_Her mother had taken her to work with her that day but now the little girl wanted to go home. "_

_We're not going home," Her mother told her._

_The little girl cried harder. Her mother's voice was flat and cold. She didn't recognize it._

_"We have to fix it." Her mother wasn't talking to the little girl anymore. Her mother let go of her hand, drifted across the room, muttering to herself._

_The little girl stood alone in the cold, white room, crying and calling for her mother who seemed to no longer be able to hear her at all. "_

_We have to fix it," Her mother said again to no one in particular._

_The little girl quieted, the occasional sniffle the only sound breaking the silence._

_Somehow, even then, she knew._

_There was no fixing this._


	2. Chapter 2

At first there was only sound, a grinding of metal on metal plus a distinctive whoosh of air as something moved upward far too quickly.

Then there was sensation bleeding through, the cool press of metal against a cheek, the sick spinning feeling of a body lying still and yet shooting through space, and the dull pain as something heavy shifted nearby pressing on body parts that must belong to one collective human.

Then there was a slamming stop, blinding light and sound again.

This time it was voices.

"What the...whoa," The closest one said before others grew louder as well.

"What the shuck is it, Gally?" Another voice called, impatience obvious in its tone.

"It's a girl," The closest voice answered, seemingly having a hard time believing its own statement.

Huh. That must be me thought the...girl, though she couldn't seem to muster the strength to open her eyes and confirm her own identity. She certainly couldn't grasp onto any thoughts that would indicate if they were right one way or the other. Everything was fuzzy in her mind, strings of sounds and words dancing in and out of her comprehension.

Worst of all was the buzzing, part sound, part pain, that was gradually growing from within her head.

"I think she might be dead," The first voice declared loudly, making the girl wish she had the ability to scrunch up her face to indicate the pain his volume caused.

"I'm coming down," called a new voice, then there was a slight bump as if someone had landed hard next to her.

She felt someone prodding gently at her shoulder as though to wake her though the act proved to be pointless. She still didn't have the energy to react at all.

That wasn't what caught her attention though.

The buzzing. The pain in her head.

As soon as the...boy? She thought the voice (like all the voices) belonged to a boy, which she was pretty sure she wasn't.

As soon as the boy had touched her...the pain had vanished.

Some vague half thought in the back of her mind wanted her to contemplate what that meant but all she could bring herself to truly register was relief before all of her limited senses melted away into blissful oblivion.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Newt paced in front of the med-jack cabin, his limp giving a distinctive rhythm to his repeated journeys from one end of the building to the other.

Step-drag-step-drag-step-drag

Normally his leg didn't give him much trouble anymore. The med-jacks had fixed him up better than they had any right to be able to given they were really just a couple of kids with bandages and other rudimentary supplies at their disposal. That plus copious (and strictly enforced) rest had left Newt with an annoying, but manageable stiffness that didn't slow him down much.

But every once in awhile, usually when he was under a lot of stress, it acted up. The pain, now usually a dull but constant companion, came back full force and forced him to favor his leg or suffer the consequences. He'd been laid up for days at a time during the worst of these fits.

Alby had a theory that it was psychological.

The last time Alby had suggested it Newt had chucked a plate of Frypan's best bacon at his friend and almost earned himself a night in the slammer for his trouble.

Alby didn't bring up that particular theory anymore though.

Step-drag-step-drag-step-drag

Newt grimaced and shook his head as an especially brutal bolt of pain shot up from his toes all the way to his hip.

He hated to admit it but Alby might have a point. Stress, anger...other negative emotions. They did tend to result in corresponding flare ups in his injury.

Bloody inconvenient too, given what had just shown up on their doorstep.

When Gally had called up from the box that there was a girl inside-a possibly dead girl at that-Newt had been sure he was feeding them a bunch of klunk.

It wasn't until he'd jumped down to the box himself that he'd accepted the truth of Gally's words.

It was a girl.

A bloody, shucking girl after what...50 boys? All coming up like clockwork, all awake if confused, and now this?

Newt couldn't shake the feeling that when she woke up everything was going to change and it wasn't a pleasant premonition.

It's not like he was so in love with the way their lives were now, the exact opposite in fact. But surviving those lives required a very delicate system to remain in place and any changes threatened to topple everything they'd worked so hard to create. Already Newt was out here standing guard in effect, Alby having ordered the non-essential gladers away from the cabin though many were still lingering within sight in case the girl made another appearance.

And if she didn't wake up...Newt didn't let himself finish the thought as he allowed himself to lean against the side of the med-jack cabin heavily.

Just because he was nervous about what the girl meant for the glade didn't mean he wanted the greenie to end up another corpse in their makeshift cemetery.

Before he had time to resume his pacing the door opened suddenly and Alby stuck his head out.

"She's awake," Their leader stated simply, shaking his head in a rueful manner. "Sort of."

Newt pushed off from the building, shooting his friend a confused look.

"What do you mean sort of?" He demanded, face scrunched in confusion.

"See for yourself," Alby shrugged, disappearing back into the cabin leaving Newt with little choice but to follow.

As soon as he did he saw exactly what Alby meant.

The girl was on the table they used as a makeshift cot, eyes open indicating her level of consciousness. However, she wasn't responding to any of the semi-frantic questions or comforting words being thrown at her from Clint and Jeff the two med-jacks in the glade. Each of them were attempting to secure an arm but the girl was thrashing around too harshly for them to get a good grip. Both of her hands were reaching upwards towards her head and when she was able to periodically snatch one or both away from the boys she would clutch at her forehead as though she were in great pain.

"She woke up and started this klunk," Alby informed Newt, moving quickly to try to help the med-jacks. "Won't listen to any shucking thing we say."

The girl was making soft whimpering sounds that occasionally built into a crescendo of a moan.

Newt didn't see what he could do that wasn't already being done but he moved towards the table and its occupant anyway.

Maybe it was because he hadn't seen a member of the opposite sex...well, maybe ever as far as his faulty memory was concerned, but he couldn't stand to see her writhing around in pain and not try to help.

When he reached the table he reached out to hold down own of the girl's legs which had just begun to twitch violently and looked to be within striking distance of Alby's face.

The second he touched her, before he even had a chance to exert any real force, her struggling stopped, and her body dropped limply back to the hard surface it rested on. The girl let out one final whimper before she was still, her eyes drifting down to Newt, seemingly just as surprised as the rest of them.

"What did you do?" Clint demanded.

Newt raised his arms in a gesture meant to indicate that he had no idea but the moment his hands left the girl's leg she groaned and began thrashing again.

"Newt!" Alby snapped, and Newt quickly dropped his hands back to their former position.

"What...where am I?" The girl had apparently found her voice and they all heard the familiar panic seeping into it. "Who are you? Where am I?"

"It's ok," Alby told her in a firm tone. "You're in a safe place. I'm Alby, I'm in charge here. This is Clint, Jeff and Newt. We're here to help you."

Alby had nodded at each of the other boys in turn as he said their names but the girl's gaze had never flickered from Newt's own, a fact he found more than a little unnerving.

"Do you remember your name?" Newt asked, without much hope. "Anything about where you came from?"

"I...I don't know," the girl shook her head as though that would somehow shake loose the answers to his questions. "I don't know who I am. I don't know anything."

"That's normal," Alby offered, probably meaning it in a comforting manner though the girl's widened eyes indicated it wasn't working. "None of the greenies remember anything at first. Your name will come back to you and we'll go from there."

"Greenies...what?" The girl seemed to be having trouble keeping her eyes open, as exhaustion threatened to overcome her despite the fact that she had only just awoken. "I don't understand. I don't know how I got here."

"You should get some more rest," Jeff offered, but it seemed as though his advice was unnecessary. The girl had already slipped back into slumber, though this seemed more like normal sleep than whatever state she had arrived in.

"Clint, Jeff, I don't want you poking and prodding at her while she's sleeping," Alby ordered, shooting the two med-jacks a look. "You try to satisfy your diagnostic curiosity and the next thing we know she's set off again. Go get some grub."

The two reluctantly did as they were told and Newt started to follow before Alby stopped him with a hand to the shoulder.

"I want you to watch her," Alby informed him.

"Why me?" Newt demanded, trying to ignore the ache in his leg that was only intensifying.

"Because you're the only one the greenie seems to let near her without trying to take their head off," Alby answered matter of factly. "Just for a few hours, Newt. I need some time to get the rest of that lot under control. This mess has riled them all up."

"Fine," Newt acquiesced despite his reservations. "Just for a few hours."

He felt badly about his lack of enthusiasm for his task. He normally had a lot to do with filling in the greenies anyway and it wasn't like he wasn't concerned about the girl's welfare. He couldn't put his finger on it but he just had a bad feeling about the whole situation.

Alby strode out of the cabin and Newt cautiously removed both hands from the girl's knee where they had been resting. The girl shuddered in her sleep and her brow furrowed slightly but she didn't wake, nor did she start moaning again.

Newt dragged a makeshift stool that was sitting nearby over to the side of the table the girl lay on and settled in for a long night.


	3. Chapter 3

_The little girl never saw the sun._

_Not since the day her mother brought her to work and they never went home._

_People said the sun was bad now. She could hear people talking when they didn’t know she was listening._

_“Solar readings...no way we could have predicted any more accurately...CDC had no reason to anticipate this type of cataclysmic event...escaping samples...accelerated mutation…”_

_And always that same word, “flare”._

_She didn’t understand much of what the people in white coats said to each other._

_But the little girl understood that she was somewhere without any windows and she never saw the sun._

_She never saw any other kids either. At least at first._

_Then one day she caught sight of a whole group of them being lead in._

_Most of them were crying and the little girl wanted to tell them that it was ok, she had cried too at first._

_But before she could even get close a hand had closed over her shoulder and one of the people in white coats was depositing her in her mother’s office._

_Her mother barely glanced up from the glowing screen in front of her as she told the little girl one of the most important things she would ever hear._

_Something that would become the central statement in the little girl’s life, though she didn’t know it yet._

_“You’re not one of them, Ada.” Her mother’s eyes flicked up briefly to meet the little girl’s before they returned to examining the screen. “They have important work to do. Don’t interfere.”_

_The little girl never saw the sun._

_And after that day it felt a little darker._


	4. Chapter 4

She woke up with a start and a gasp, her lungs burning as though she had been holding her breath while she slept. 

She sensed movement to her left and realized that when she had woken she had also surprised a nearby boy out of his own slumber judging by the his confused look and the wobbling of the stool he sat on. 

She had time to take two more deep breaths and give the boy a quick examination-messy blonde hair, dark eyes, slim build-before he regained his wits enough to react to her wakeful state. 

She also unfortunately had time to take note that while much improved, that painful buzzing in her brain had not totally ceased. 

“Easy there, don’t fall off the table,” The boy warned, reaching out to steady her just as she realized he was in fact correct and she was teetering dangerously close to the edge. 

He had an accent, pleasant and musical that her mind was somehow able to identify as British. 

“Great,” She thought, scooting cautiously back towards the middle of the table without getting unnecessarily close to the boy until she had more time to asses his intentions. “I can remember enough to place accents but not enough to know who I am.” 

But almost as soon as the thought crossed her mind, she felt her head clear slightly. The buzzing had faded again, and the added clarity allowed something deep inside her to protest that her complaint wasn’t true. 

She did know her name.  
Ada. 

Her name was Ada. 

“Ada?” The boy repeated. “Is that your name?”

Ah. So apparently she’d said that out loud. 

Ada considered carefully before responding. She didn’t know anything about this boy. Hell, she still didn’t know anything about herself beyond her first name. Still, he hadn’t tried to hurt her yet and it was better to trust him at least temporarily rather than bolt for God knows where on her own. 

So she nodded, indicating that he was correct in his assumption. 

“Ada,” He repeated once more, seemingly rolling the short word around on his tongue to test it out. “Right, well I’m Newt. And you’re in a place called the Glade. I’m sure you have a lot of questions but right now it should be just about time for breakfast. I think we should get you some food and go from there, alright?” 

She hesitated, but finally settled for nodding again. Now that the heaviness of sleep and the pain had both faded she could feel a gnawing hunger building in her stomach. 

“Good that,” Newt offered her a half smile. “I missed my dinner last night to keep an eye on you, Greenie.” 

Ada frowned but didn’t bother asking for an explanation of the strange name the boy...Newt had referred to her as. She had bigger concerns like getting some food in her stomach and figuring out where the hell she was and why she couldn’t…

Ada’s stream of thoughts were caught off unceremoniously when Newt pulled away from her and stood. 

The buzzing pain was back. 

It was bearable. In fact it was subtle enough that yesterday she could have mistaken it for lingering effects of an injury sustained in...whatever that thing she’d come here was. 

But no, this was something else and she was finally starting to piece together the fact that the pain’s intensity or lack thereof was directly related to how close she was to the boy standing in front of her, seemingly uncomfortable under her critical gaze. 

Ada squinted her eyes at him, attempting to give her brain time to sort out what was so special about him that her very physical well being seemed tied to his proximity. 

“What?” He asked, shifting awkwardly at the intense scrutiny. 

“Just let me try something,” Ada muttered, determined to find the answer to at least one of the thousand questions currently rushing through her mind. 

She could see the inquiry starting to form on his lips but before he could ask what exactly she planned to try, Ada was leaping forward arms outstretched. 

“Ompf,” Newt exhaled hard, all of the air being forced from his body at once as she made impact with his chest. 

He didn’t do anything for a moment, too shocked to react to the crazy greenie suddenly launching herself at him. 

For her part Ada, pushed back slightly, bracing a hand on each of Newt’s shoulders, embarrassment burning somewhere in the back of her mind. She might not remember much but she had enough instincts left to know that this wasn’t exactly normal behavior. This was just a dull echo however; and easy to ignore behind the dominating thought pulsing through her brain now that she and Newt were in direct contact again. 

The pain was completely gone. Again. 

As soon as they were touching the pain disappeared. If they were close to each other the pain was still around but receded significantly. 

“It’s gone,” She murmured to herself, examining the face of the boy that was now so close to hers, searching for any hint of what connected them. 

He seemed to examine her back for a moment, his own stare less quizzical and more anxious before he appeared to fully grasp the situation.

“Whoa,” Newt somehow managed to both grab her hands and remove them from his shoulders and hop back at least a foot at the same time, putting significantly more space between them. “What are you doing?”

It might have been comical if Ada hadn’t been distracted by the hint of pain that had returned as soon as their contact was broken. 

“The pain,” She reached upwards with one hand to point helplessly at her forehead, giving it a quick tap for good measure.

“I’ll get Clint,” Newt offered, making to step around the table she still rested on. “He’s keeper of the med-jacks, he might have something…”

“No, you don’t get it,” Ada interrupted, leaning over to block his path. “When I’m touching your or...you’re touching me...it stops. The further away you are the worse it is.”

Newt frowned, the corners of his mouth pulling downward grimly even while one eyebrow shot up illustrating his skepticism. 

“What now?” 

“I don’t get it either,” Ada shook her head as if to clear it, but in reality she knew that was a vain hope at this point. “I don’t get anything right now. But it’s true.” 

Newt didn’t say anything at first just stared at her as if if he did so long enough she would take back what she’d said and admit she had been playing a joke. 

Well, Ada had no intention of doing that. She just wanted to understand what was happening to her. And who “her” was while she was at it would be nice. 

Finally Newt sighed, reaching up to ruffle the hair at the nape of his neck in exasperation he probably didn’t want to be as obvious as it was. 

“Look, you took a good tumble in the box and you just woke up,” He spoke to her in a calm, soft voice, the way you might talk to an animal you were worried about spooking. “Can we just get some food in you? In both of us? We can figure out the rest later.” 

Ada hesitated. As hungry as she was how did he expect her to think about anything else, even food, when she had just woken up in a strange place, with a strange boy, no idea of who she was or what was happening to her?

Her stomach made the final decision for her by letting out a loud rumble at that moment, earning her a tiny smirk from Newt and a blush rushing to her cheeks. 

“Ok,” She decided, hopping off the table awkwardly. 

For his part Newt had started to reach out to steady her then thought better of it and withdrew his hand, clearly torn between the instinct to help and the desire not to touch her again unless absolutely necessary. 

Ada decidedly ignored his indecision, not wanting to make herself anymore of a burden than she already was. She didn’t know if she could trust him but it seemed that she needed him for the time being and not just for the food he had promised.

And so instead of reaching out and grasping onto some part of Newt, any part of Newt, to ease the slowly returning subtle buzzing in her mind Ada simply followed him out of the cabin as close as she dared. 

******************************************************************************  
Newt tried to ignore the stares of the other gladers as he led Ada into the mess hall but they didn’t make it easy on him. 

The place went silent upon their entrance then immediately launched into the kind of noisy quiet that only comes from a room full of people all whispering at the same time. 

Ada was walking close enough to him that he felt it when she tensed under their interested gazes, and he fought the urge to flinch at her proximity. She would adjust, they always did. None of the previous greenies had clung quite this close to him, but it wasn’t a picnic for any of them. 

Alby half rose from his seat and Newt held up a hand to indicate he had the situation under control before steering Ada by the elbow over to where Frypan was dishing out oatmeal. 

“Newt,” Frypan gave him a nod of acknowledgment as he handed over a bowl which Newt promptly passed on to Ada before taking another for himself. “Greenie.” 

Ada met the nickname with a blank stare, her fingers clutching tightly at the bowl.  
“Is she ok?” Frypan stage whispered, earning him an eyeroll from Newt. 

“She’s fine,” Newt answered firmly, using his free hand to once again steer Ada by the elbow this time towards the only empty table on the far end of the mess hall. He didn’t want to take any chances that she’d start spouting off that klunk about touching him in front of the rest of the gladers. He knew they would never let that go and they had enough to gossip about for the time being. 

Ada sunk down onto the bench next to the table with a grateful sigh, seemingly just as eager as he was to no longer be standing in the middle of a room with all eyes turned to them. Newt followed suit, on the opposite side of the table, pointedly ignoring when the whispers started again from all around them. 

Ada was twirling her wooden spoon around in her bowl examining its contents with a skeptical eye. 

“It’s oatmeal,” Newt chuckled. She was like a little kid not wanting to try food until she was sure what it was. “They sent up supplies at the same time you came up so enjoy it. Stuff like this never lasts long.”

“Who is they?” Ada leaned forward. 

Newt sighed and gestured towards her bowl. He was going to get some food in her if it killed him.

Now it was Ada’s time to roll her eyes but she acquiesced to his silent request and shoved a spoonful of the oatmeal into her mouth. 

Newt took the time to take a scoop for himself, ignoring her frustrated stare before he cleared his throat. 

“We call them the creators, but we don’t really know who they are,” He explained. “All we know is someone sends up the box every month with a few supplies and a new guy...or girl in your case.” 

“There haven’t been any other girls?” She demanded, leaning forward again. 

Newt nodded pointedly at her bowl and couldn’t help but chuckle again as she groaned in annoyance but obeyed his insistence that she eat. She might be a little crazy but she was good for a laugh.

Once they had each had another scoop of oatmeal, Newt continued. 

“No, greenie, you are our first and only female glader,” Ada started to open her mouth to ask another question but Newt rushed on before she could get anything out. “No, I don’t know why there have never been any other girls or why things changed now. Why do you think every shucking guy in here is staring at you?” 

Ada blushed and dropped her gaze to the table. 

That was cute. If you liked that sort of thing. Which he might. Or not. It wasn’t like he had anything to compare it to. 

“Why does everyone keep calling me that?” She asked when she had recovered from her embarrassment.

“What, Greenie?” Newt shrugged, shoveling more oatmeal into his mouth and talking around it. “It’s what we call all our new arrivals. Next month they’ll be a new greenie and everyone will call you by your lovely name, don’t worry.” 

That earned him a small smile and Ada resumed eating. 

“Speaking of which, Alby’s going to want to know that you’ve remembered what you’re called,” Newt told her, finishing up his oatmeal and rising from the bench. “Come on, let’s get you sorted.”


	5. Chapter 5

_As the little girl got older she studied hard._

_Some of the people in white coats came into focus, names were assigned to faces, and a makeshift classroom was made just for her._

_She was taught about science and computers and other subjects her mother deemed important for hours everyday.  
But she never learned what the other kids did. _

_Whatever they were learning was off limits._

_She saw them sometimes when she dared to creep to the wing where they were kept, the tiny window in the door to their classroom affording her a tiny glimpse of what it would be like not to be alone._

_She hated them sometimes._

_She hated them for being together when she was alone._

_She didn’t know yet. She hadn’t learned the truly important things._

_No one ever thought to teach her._

_She didn’t know yet, being together wasn’t the same as not being alone._


	6. Chapter 6

fter breakfast and a quick introduction to Alby now that she could actually offer her name in exchange for him repeating his, a meeting was called. 

The meeting was about Ada but she wasn’t actually invited. 

Instead she’d trailed behind Newt as he in turn followed Alby over to yet another small, one room cabin that was apparently reserved for important “gatherings” as the boys had called it. 

“So all the bosses…” Ada started, huffing along trying to keep up with Newt’s slightly unsteady and yet surprisingly fast gate. 

“The keepers,” He corrected not slowing down in the slightest. 

“Right, so all the keepers are going to go in there and talk about if you should do what, kill me?” 

That got his attention. 

He ground to a halt and Ada bumped into his back. 

“What? No, we’re not going to hurt you.” 

Ada shrugged as they resumed their journey across the glade. “Sorry, apparently my mind goes to the worst place first. But what’s the gathering for then?”

“Just don’t worry, Greenie.” They had reached their destination and Alby had already disappeared inside. “And stay here. Or better yet, over there.”

He pointed to a tree a few hundred yards away. 

Ada gulped, warning bells sounding in her mind. Not only were they about to make decisions about her fate without even allowing her to be present but she still hadn’t had a chance to figure out what was going on with her need to be close to Newt. This could go very badly. 

Still. 

No point in ticking off the boys right before they decided what to do with her. 

Newt must have seen the uncertainty flash across her face because he gave her a semi-comforting pat on the shoulder before pushing her gently in the direction of the tree. 

Ada had only taken half a step in that direction before she felt the whoosh of air as the door behind her closed forcefully, sealing her out and maybe sealing her fate along with it. 

She sighed. 

This whole having no say in your own life-a life you couldn’t even remember up to this point-really did stink. 

Ada took her time wandering over to the tree, glancing left and right to take her first good look at the Glade as she went. 

The most obvious feature was the one that she had tried very hard up to this point not to register. The entire clearing where the boys lived was surrounded by walls so high it almost seemed impossible that they had been created by man. It seemed more natural to think of them as part of the landscape, monoliths of stone sprouting from the ground like mountains, dividing them from whatever lay beyond. That clearly wasn’t the case however; because Ada could see a large opening in the walls too perfect to be natural and beyond that a corridor among the stone. 

She was tempted to go closer and examine this opening for herself but some unexplainable anxiety seeped over her at the very thought. There was just something wrong about all of this and as curious as she was another part of her wanted to close her eyes and ignore all the bits that didn’t make sense and hope they went away. 

Ada forcefully turned her gaze away from the opening and observed the gladers who were everywhere around her. From her fairly central location she could see at least five groups of gladers, some working in what looked to be a garden of some sort, some patching up the mess hall roof, and some scrubbing clothes in a large bucket outside of another building. The other two groups were clearly hard at work too but Ada couldn’t quite make out what they were doing. 

What she could make out unfortunately, was that most if not all of the gladers were also observing her. 

Again. 

Oh they were trying to be subtle about it, trying being the operative word. 

One of the guys working in the garden had actually just smacked himself in the head with the handle of his rake because he was too busy watching her to realize a great big stupid stick was headed directly for his face. 

Ada swallowed a giggle at the sight. 

She hated the attention, hated the fact that all these people she had just met were looking at her for answers to questions about herself she didn’t even know the answers to.

But she was only human. A rake to the face was always going to be funny. 

Finally Ada made it to the tree Newt had directed her to and was pleasantly surprised to find that it offered more shade than she’d expected. It was a little on the scrawny side which probably explained why the boys hadn’t chopped it down to build something with already. She noticed that there was a relatively small patch of woods lining the opposite end of the Glade and the trees there were much bigger. She had to admit the patch of shade this one provided was enough to greatly increase Ada’s comfort level. The Glade was hot. She could feel herself sweating and knew she could probably use a shower. Of course she didn’t know exactly how long it had been since her last one but she suspected the answer was long enough. 

Ada let her body sink down to the ground, taking stock of the sensations that managed to feel familiar and brand new at the same time. The soft grass slid between her fingers, the rough texture of the bark as she leaned her head back and closed her eyes, the ever so slight breeze that made wisps of hair flick against her cheek periodically. 

It was lovely. 

And then it became impossible to ignore what she had been striving to forget. 

The buzzing that had been only a slight and annoying accompaniment to the world around her began to grow steadily and painfully. It was like someone had left a television tuned to pure static and then turned the volume up as loud as it would go. 

It was as if her head was the television. 

Ada wondered briefly how she even knew what a television was. Did she watch television? Was that something she had done? She still had no idea. It was just like the color blue and the ability to walk, they were things she knew and recognized but not memories that had any context as they related to her own life. 

That disconnect would have been incredibly disturbing to her had she been able to focus enough to really contemplate it. Instead all she could do was groan and raise a heavy hand to rub pointlessly at her forehead. It felt like her hand had to travel through molasses to get there and once it did her hopeful rubbing had no effect. 

“Just tough it out,” Ada told herself forcefully, hoping somewhere in the back of her mind that any gladers still watching her were too far away to realize she was in fact now talking to herself. 

She didn’t want to face the wrath of the boys at the gathering if she burst in now, not when her fate was in their hands. Nor did she want to make things harder for Newt, who despite his frustrating insistence on doling out answers when it suited him and not when she asked, had actually been nothing but kind to her so far. 

Almost as if it knew of her mental resistance the pain in her head intensified ten fold, the buzzing increasing in volume until Ada half believed it was blaring through speakers filling the Glade with its ugly tone. 

Ada dug her feet into the ground and clutched at the grass desperately, perspiration dotting her brow as she put everything she had into staying seated.  
“Just five seconds at a time,” She whispered to herself. “1...2...3...4...5, 1...2...3…” 

At this point the searing pain reached a crescendo and both of Ada’s hands disobeyed her and clutched at her head tight enough that she knew she was probably drawing blood. 

All thoughts of resistance and strength were banished from her mind. In fact all conscious thoughts had disappeared all together. Instead instinct took over and Ada rose shakily to her feet, stumbling in the direction of the gathering cabin. She made it a few yards before the pain once again increased in intensity and she fell to her knees letting out an almost inhuman wail as it washed over her. 

Everyone in the Glade must be looking at her by now, but there was no thought of dignity lost as Ada reached out desperately with her arms to drag herself forward. She crawled along blindly for a few moments, the pain manifesting as a bright white light that temporarily blinded her. She continued this way half crawling, half dragging herself across the grass for what seemed like forever but in reality was only seconds before her searching hand came into contact with something solid and vertical. 

Her vision cleared briefly and Ada was able to use the last of her strength to stumble to a half standing position and yank the door open, immediately collapsing through it as soon as the gap appeared. She was sure her sudden appearance must have caused a stir but her hearing had faded away completely at this point except for the God awful buzzing. 

Blinking away the dots that threatened to overwhelm her eyes once again, Ada spotted Newt, already rising from his seat, his mouth moving in meaningless symbolism. With an incredible last burst of effort she managed two more steps in his direction, steps he thankfully matched with his own, meeting her in the middle. 

Her legs gave out just as his arms wrapped around her, catching her before she could collapse completely. The relief was instant if not complete, the buzzing fading away to allow the shouts to filter in just as her consciousness slipped out of her grasp. 

“What the shucking hell, Newt?”

And closer, much closer, just above her ear, Newt’s voice calling her name. 

“Ada!” 

“Huh,” She thought as she allowed herself to embrace the encroaching darkness in front of her eyes. 

It was the first time since he’d discovered her name was hers that he’d actually used it. 

******************************************************************************

“No,” Newt found himself shaking his head for what felt like the hundredth time during the gathering. “You can’t lock a Greenie up just for showing up. We have a system for this.” 

“We don’t have anything for _this_ ,” Gally insisted, several other gladers nodding at his words much to Newt’s irritation. “Three years this has been happening. Three years, nothing changes and now this? It has to mean something.” 

“Maybe they ran out of dudes,” Minho offered sarcastically, earning him a few laughs before a glare from Alby and Gally alike shut them up. 

“Even if it does mean something is changing, what do you think she’s going to do?” Newt asked incredulously. “Murder us in our sleep? She doesn’t need to be in the slammer.” 

“Just because she’s pretending to like you doesn’t mean she won’t do something to the rest of us,” Gally spat. 

Newt sad red. He was normally one of the most levelheaded during these types of discussions but Gally was pushing every button he had. 

He took half a step in the other boys’ direction before Alby’s hand interrupted his progress, resting warningly against his chest. 

“Slim it, Gally,” Alby ordered. “I didn’t call this gathering so that we could…”

Alby never got a chance to finish his sentence. 

He was interrupted by the door flying open and a blur that he vaguely recognized as Ada half crawling, half stumbling inside. 

“Whoa!”

“Is she ok?”  
“You ok, Greenie?”

Newt heard the shouts of the keepers present but he wasn’t really processing their words. Instead he was already moving across the room which allowed him to be ready when her feet gave out to catch her, one arm around her waist the other sliding up to cradle her head. 

“What the shucking hell, Newt?” Alby demanded from somewhere over his shoulder but Newt ignored his friend in favor of examining the girl in his arms for any signs of life. 

“Ada?” 

She didn’t stir and Newt furrowed his brow in equal parts worry and frustration. 

He gave her a gentle shake but gained no reaction for his trouble. 

Before he could consider his next course of action the door burst open again, and a quick glance in that direction told him it was Clint and Jeff, several other gladers trying to crowd in behind as Minho in turn tried to keep them out. 

The two med-jacks slid to a stop next to Newt, Clint immediately reaching out to feel Ada’s forehead. 

“We saw her from all the way across the Glade,” Jeff explained, clearly out of breath. “She was just sitting under the tree, not doing anything, when all of the sudden she’s crawling over here making all sorts of shucking noises like somebody was murdering her.” 

His words hit Newt like a slap in the face. When she’d barged in looking like death itself his concern and shock had blinded him to the obvious fact that this confirmed Ada’s jacked theory. 

If they were too far apart there were consequences. 

Consequences Ada was suffering now because he hadn’t wanted to deal with glader gossip. 

“Sorry, I’m such a slinthead, Ada,” Newt had time to think before Clint and Jeff were pulling Ada from his arms and he had to follow quickly in order to keep contact between them. 

He wasn’t able to touch Ada throughout her entire examination by the med-jacks but he stayed by the side of the table where she lay prone, as close as he dared earning him a raised eyebrow from Alby. 

Newt merely shook his head firmly, his friend luckily trusting him enough to accept his signal and wait for his answers. 

After nearly half an hour of poking and prodding, Clint and Jeff finally admitted that they were out of their depth and there wasn’t much they could do for her other than a cool cloth and wait for her to wake up to see if she knew what had set off her fit. 

Alby gave them each a pat on the back and shooed them out of the cabin before turning back to face Newt. 

“Alright, start talking, buddy,” Alby said in a way that didn’t leave any room for disobedience despite his relatively friendly tone. 

“Bloody hell,” Newt muttered.


	7. Chapter 7

_The little girl didn't sleep very well most nights._

_She hadn't since they'd come to this place, the place that used to be nothing more to her than where her mother worked and had since become her whole world._

_It had started as their safe haven but now it felt more like a prison most of the time._

_The little girl was not quite so little anymore and it became impossible not to understand some of the horrors that kept them there._

_The sun was bad now._

_People had died._

_A sickness had come._

_More people had died._

_People were probably dying still. And those that weren't..._

_The little girl had heard a word. Crank._

_She didn't fully understand it but her mind conjured up images of monsters, hideous beasts ready to sink their sharp claws into her skin._

_Her bedroom had only one small, round window and it didn't show much of the outside world._

_It didn't let her see the sun._

_It didn't let her see other people._

_Just one small patch of sand._

_But at night she swore she heard scratching on the thick glass and dreamed of monsters beating on its surface, looking for a way in._

_The little girl didn't sleep well most nights._

_Just lay in the darkness, waiting for the monsters._


	8. Chapter 8

Alby didn't say anything until after Newt had finished explaining what little he knew about what was going on between him and Ada. 

His expression didn't so much as flicker when Newt laid out each of the events that led him to believe that Ada wasn't entirely wrong about her seeming need to stay close to him. 

His expression didn't change, but Newt knew his friend well enough to know exactly what was going through his mind. 

So it came as no surprise when Alby's first words after he finished were, “You know that's jacked, right?” 

“Yeah, pretty much,” Newt acknowledged, dropping tiredly onto a nearby stool. He glanced over to make sure his new position hadn't caused Ada any discomfort and seeing that her expression and position seemed unchanged, allowed himself to slump back down, head buried in his hands. 

“But,” Alby continued firmly. “I believe it.” 

Newt's head shot up and his eyebrows reached even further upward. Now that had managed to surprise him. 

“You believe it,” He repeated skeptically. 

Alby shrugged, then dropped onto the other stool. 

“Think about it man,” He said. “It's crazy, no doubt about it. It makes no sense. But neither does anything else in this shucking place. Someone is clearly running the show and it's not us. After everything else they've set up here nothing seems impossible. Unfortunately.” 

“Yeah,” Newt agreed, softly, his throat feeling suddenly scratchy though he'd barely used it for the past few hours. 

There was a moment of silence before Newt broke it with an almost involuntary groan earning him a laugh from Alby. 

Why did the new greenie have to be a girl?

Why did she have to be in danger of passing out every five minutes?

And why, why, why did the previous two have to involve him so shucking intimately?

“Well, at least that solves one problem,” Alby offered, amusement coloring his tone. 

“And what would that be?” Newt demanded disbelievingly. 

“Where the greenie's going to sleep,” Alby stated all together too matter of factly, failing to entirely hide the grin that threatened to erupt on his face. 

“Alby...” Newt protested, seeing exactly where his friend was going with this. 

He couldn't possibly be serious. 

“She has an aneurysm every time she's out of your sight, Newt,” Alby pointed out almost comically patiently. 

He had a point. 

Newt refused to tell him that though. 

“So that's the solution? Join us at the hip 24/7? For how long?” He demanded, reaching up to tug at the hair at the nape of his neck, giving away his anxiety more than he would have liked. 

“Until we find a better one,” Alby shrugged. 

It was a sensible answer, and probably the only one they could hope for at the moment when they understood so little about what was bloody going on. 

That didn't make Newt like it anymore. 

He frowned and let the silence stretch between them until Alby decided to break it with a decidedly unhelpful comment. 

“You know, most of these shanks would be begging to bunk with the greenbean.” 

Newt rolled his eyes, glancing over at Ada's still prone form to make sure she wasn't recovering her conscious state at a very inopportune time. 

“Yeah, well I'm not most of these shanks.” Newt huffed, crossing his arms and leaning back as far as the stool allowed without feeling like he was in danger of falling off. 

“Nope,” Alby agreed, shaking his head sagely though the glint in his eye gave away the enjoyment he was getting out of this conversation. “And that's why you're in charge when I'm not around.” 

Newt scoffed. 

“Good thing you're always around.” 

“Yeah, Alby smirked, leaning forward to slap Newt's knee affably. “Good thing.” 

Alby had left soon after, spouting some klunk about being a very important leader with important leader things to do before leaving Newt alone to wait for Ada to wake up. 

He took the opportunity to take in her appearance in a way he hadn't allowed himself to before.

Dirty blonde hair, puffed out around her head like a fuzzy pillow.

A fuzzy pillow that could use a good brushing.

Maybe it was the color of hair that term brought to his mind, maybe her hair was just blonde...and dirty...but it wasn't like her hair color made shuck all difference to him so he moved on. 

Eyes...well, they were closed weren't they? So no information to be gleaned there. 

This was going bloody wonderful so far. 

She had a face that was kind of...sharp? But not too pointy or anything just not very...round? 

Yeah, he wasn't exactly in the habit of describing girls and he was finding himself woefully unprepared for the task now. 

His eyes drifted down past her chin and quickly skimmed over what was obvious below that. 

So yeah...she had...those. Right. Good. Move on you, pervert. 

She was slim. Short. Shortish. Definitely short compared to him. Her overall appearance was pale, slight, almost fragile but not quite. 

She was pretty he supposed. 

Well, of course she was pretty. He just didn't have anything to compare her to. She didn't make him forget his name just by looking at her or anything, but she definitely was a sight for sore eyes after being stuck with nothing but shanks like him for visual entertainment up to this point. 

Newt allowed himself to lean forward slightly and reach out tentatively to brush a finger across her arm. 

Girls were supposed to be inherently softer than guys right? That was a thing wasn't it?

She didn't seem particularly softer than he would expect any of the greenies who hadn't spent years in the harsh conditions of the Glade to be. Maybe her face...

Newt leaned forward even more reaching that same tentative finger towards her cheek this time when her eyes suddenly snapped open locking onto his as he froze in horror. 

“Well, this could have gone better,” flashed through Newt's mind, embarrassment flooding him. 

It wasn't the only thing flooding through him though. 

The biggest feeling was simple and uncomplicated. 

Relief.   
*****************************************************************************

Ada's first thought when the darkness in her mind suddenly gave way and her eyes popped open wasn't really much of a thought at all, more of an overwhelming, instinctual feeling. 

Newt being far away was bad. 

Newt being far away hurt a lot. 

But Newt wasn't far away anymore, he was close. 

It was right about then that enough of her processing prowess kicked in that she was able to take in the fact that he was quite close, like really, really close. 

His upper body was hovering over hers, his eyes level with her own, his finger outstretched and hovering just over her cheek. 

Ada frowned, confusion seeping in enough to cloud her feeling of joy at the pain being gone by this point.   
For his part, Newt seemed frozen and Ada watched with a bemused fascination as he took one, two breathes in and out. 

“What are you doing?” She eventually whispered. She didn't know why whispered her question. The moment seemed fragile somehow, and besides there was still a residual headache pulsing through her head as evidence of the ordeal her body had endured mere hours earlier. 

At least she though it was mere hours earlier. It could have been ten minute or two days she supposed, for all she knew. 

She really had to stop losing time like this. 

Her question appeared to be the impetus Newt needed to regain his senses and he hoisted himself upright quickly, coughing into one fist for no obvious reason other than to cover his discomfort in the moment. 

Despite everything Ada had to swallow a smile at that gesture. 

That wasn't obvious or anything. 

“I was checking your pulse, Greenie,” He explained hurriedly. “Can't have you dying on my watch.” 

He seemed to grimace slightly as soon as the words had left his mouth and she wanted to tell him she hadn't almost died on his watch, not really. Neither of them understood what was wrong with her and how much of a solution he was. He didn't know her. She didn't know her. She wasn't his responsibility. 

Still. She'd prefer not to totally eliminate his guilt if that was what stood between her and agonizing death. 

So she didn't say any of that.

Instead she pushed herself up by her elbows and shot him a teasing look, as light and playful as she could manage at the moment. 

“You were checking my pulse on my cheek?” She teased. “Didn't think you'd have more luck elsewhere?” 

“Oh, I'm sorry, did you suddenly remember a medical degree you forgot to tell me about?” He countered with false offense, though the smile he offered her seemed genuine. “Yeah, yeah,” She rolled her eyes. 

Neither of them said anything for a moment and Ada took the opportunity to take stock of herself. Aside from the residual headache, she seemed to be in one piece. 

“So...” She waved her hands in a helpless gesture that didn't really indicate anything beyond her awkwardness, though it was too late to take it back now. “I'm not dead.” 

“No,” Newt sobered again at her words. “Not dead.” 

“But I'm pretty sure my theory about our physical proximity is looking more and more plausible,” She forged ahead waiting for him to protest. 

He didn't. 

Apparently her latest horrifically painful and equally mortifying episode had gone along way to convincing him. 

“We need to figure out what's happening to me,” Ada said as decisively as she could. “And we need to know what it has to do with you.” 

“Well, sure, why didn't I think of that,” Newt mocked. “Figure out what's happening, right. While we're at it why don't we just figure out how to beat the maze and get our memories back too? If it's not too much trouble.” 

“Maze?” Ada, furrowed her brow at the passing mention. “Those walls around the Glade is a maze? Is that the way out?”

Newt sighed, one hand coming up to massage his forehead. Maybe he was the one developing a headache at this point. 

“I keep forgetting you're such a newbie,” Newt said. “We need to get you a tour, and you need to audition for the keepers to get your job assignment and...” 

“I need to touch everyone in the Glade,” Ada interrupted, the next step to solving the mystery surrounding her suddenly becoming clear in her mind. 

This had potential. If she could just gather everyone up at once and...

“What?” He was staring at her as though she had completely lost her mind. 

“I need to see if it's really just you that has this effect,” She shrugged. It seemed pretty obvious to her. “I've already been in contact with Alby and Clint and...what's his name? Jeff. So none of them have any result. But everyone else is inconclusive so far.” 

“Yeah, but it's not like your head is exploding when you're too far away from anyone else,” Newt protested. 

“True...” Ada mused as she hopped off of the table and stood shakily, swatting away Newt's hands as he attempted to steady her. “But we don't know that no one else's closeness solves the problem. We don't know enough to make any kind of educated guess about this weirdness yet, we've got to gather more information.” 

Ada took a couple of wobbly steps toward the cabin door before Newt regained his voice. 

“By touching every single glader?” He demanded. 

“To start with,” Ada agreed, her mind already racing with other tests she could conduct. The idea of regaining some tiny scrap of control over her situation lending her renewed energy. 

The next thing she knew Newt was in front of her, one arm braced on either side of the doorway blocking her escape. 

“Not bloody likely,” He snapped, taking her by surprise. 

“Why not?” She asked, confusion once again marring her expression. 

“Let me get this straight,” Newt's voice was almost eerily calm, and one arm came up to point behind him towards the door and glade beyond. “You want to just line up a bunch of teenage boys and invite them one by one to touch the first girl they've ever shucking seen?”

Ada frowned. 

Oh. 

“When you put it like that...” She admitted quietly. 

Newt shook his head. 

“What am I going to do with you, Greenie?” His voice was tired and Ada felt a stab of guilt penetrate her disappointment. 

She hadn't given up on the idea of testing her reaction to physical proximity with other gladers. Nor did she have any ideas to stop experimenting until she found an answer to what was wrong with her. And after that, despite Newt's sarcasm at suggesting it, maybe she could put her mind to figuring out everything else about this place that made no sense. 

But for now, for now she owed the boy in front of her one. 

“Well,” She answered softly. “I heard something about a tour?” 

Newt seemed to visibly relax at her suggestion, apparently closer to being on comfortable footing with that scenario. 

“Ok, Greenie,” He pushed open the door behind him and gestured for her to follow him out which she did, her legs feeling more and more willing to keep her upright. “There's three rules you need to know...”


End file.
